End of Year Reading Goal Recap and my 2024 Reading Goal

Disclosure: I am an affiliate of Bookshop.org where your purchases support local bookstores. I will earn a commission if you click through and make a purchase, at no cost to you.

At the beginning of the year, I set out with a reading goal of 40 books for 2023 and I met my goal! I wrote about my reading habits earlier this year on my post, 2023 Reading Goal of 40 books with Last Year Recap & Tips for Reading More. I think after two years of working on reading more habitually, it’s finally part of my routine and recommendation algorithm.

Reading Goal of 40 Books in 2023

I consider myself a casual reader and I like a mix of non-fiction books about nature or memoirs and fiction topics of thriller, mystery, and romance. And sometimes, I just need an easy beach read book to motivate me to keep reading so I’m not above some of the popular authors or book lists.

Buying a Kindle for my Reading Goal

I kept my reading goal on track when I finally bought a Kindle. I’ve been a diehard paper book person but I knew I had a lot of travel coming up and wanted to keep my reading goal on track. Connecting my Kindle to the library Libby app has been a great way to mix up reading.

Apps I Use to Keep Track of the Books I’ve Read

I also kept track of my books using Goodreads and posting to my Instagram highlights. On Goodreads, I give the book a rating out of 5 stars. I love reading what others thought of the book, although this year I am also going try Storygraph to keep track. On Instagram, I write a one sentence description of the book with another sentence of my thoughts on the book, without spoiling anything.

Lunar Kitchen on Bookshop.org

I have recently become an affiliate for Bookshop.org! This org aligns with my values of supporting small, independent bookshops rather than the big retailers. I’m excited to have my Lunar Kitchen Book Store where you can see and purchase the books I’ve read for 2023 and upcoming in 2024. I’ll also be adding my favorite cookbook lists and favorite all-time books soon!

Books I finished in 2023

“Local Woman Missing” by Mary Kubica
Psychological thriller, page turner made me finish in 1 day, had me guessing til the end.
“House of Leaves” by Mark Z. Danielewski
Creepy, disorientaing, memorable, and the experimental typography and layout design excited my inner graphic design nerd.
“Beach Read” by Emily Henry
Quick romance read to palette cleanse. Enjoyable enough story. Not about beaches. I liked this book more than Henry’s other book, People You Meet on Vacation.
“Cleopatra and Frankenstein” by Coco Mellors
A couple with a large age gape rushes into marriage. I liked the pacing, tolerated only one character, and felt the descriptions were like a love letter to New York City.
“Book Lovers” by Emily Henry
Had to push through the cringy first chapters and cliche location setting. Emily Henry def has a formula to her novels.
“Greenwich Park” by Katherine Faulkner
An enjoyable page turning mystery book about a woman who makes a new friend at a prenatal class in London.
“Blackmail and Bibingka” by Mia P. Manansala
Third book in this cozy mystery series about a Filipino family in the midwest. Even with all the delish food descriptions, I wish the writing and plots were better.
“Sometimes I Lie” by Alice Feeney
A woman in a coma can hear her surroundings, but still can’t move or remember how she got there. So many confusing twists happened and it unlocked a new fear.
“Wrong Place Wrong Time” by Gillian McAllister
A mother witnesses a murder and then wakes up the day before it happens, trying to stop it from happening. Starts off repetitive but gets better as the dots start to connect. A ‘butterfly effect’ book.
“It Starts with Us” by Colleen Hoover
This part 2 book was def for fan service but I was still a sucker to see where they ended up. Easy beach read.
“Maybe You Should Talk to Someone” by Lori Gottlieb
Written by a therapist about her own experience seeing a therapist and her patients. I loved her honest writing style, this was so good!
“The Maid” by Nita Prose
A hotel maid finds a dead body. Almost didn’t finish. The pacing dragged, stereopyped characters, confusing at times. Thankful it was a quick read.
“Tenth of December” by George Saunders
10 short stories that will make you go back and reread what you just read out of confusion or shock. They’re a mix of dark and dystopia. I didn’t love every story but the stories that are good are GOOD.
“Tomorrow and Tomorrow and Tomorrow” by Gabrielle Zevin
A story about friendship, creating video games, love, and trauma. This was so good and enthralling as a fellow creative and nerd. I loved it.
“Dark Matter” by Blake Crouch
Sci-fi novel about timelines and decisions. It’s a good thriller with matrix vibes and I really enjoyed it. Can’t wait for the TV series adaptation.
“I’m Glad My Mom Died” by Jennette McCurdy
A memoir about growing up as a child actor on iCarly and the abuse she suffered from her mom. The poignent title turned me off at first but wow, such a candid, insightful read.
“Into Thin Air: A Personal Account of the Mount Everest Disaster” by Jon Krakauer
The author’s real story of climbing Mount Everest in 1996 during one of its deadliest years. I have zero interest in going to Everest after reading how scary, expensive, and terrible it sounds.
“The Paper Palace” by Miranda Cowley Heller
A woman cheats on her husband at her Cape Cod summer home and has to decide who she will choose. Honestly did not want to finish this book, too much horrible abuse that I don’t think added to the story. Only finished to see who she picked and was really annoyed with the ending.
“You Sound Like a White Girl” by Julissa Arce
As a Mexican-American, there was a lot to unpack in this book. It touches on assimilating into American culture through English, history of discriminatory laws, and navigating American expectations while honoring your culture.
“Lessons in Chemistry” by Bonnie Garmus
A smart, no-nonsense woman in the ’50s deals with making a chemistry career for herself in that era. Enjoyable read with cooking, feminisim, and a loyal dog.
“The 4-Hour Work Week” by Timothy Ferriss
Tips for optimizing your workload to live the life you want. This book has a lot of outdated info but I kept reading in hopes of learning something.
“The Nightingale” by Kristin Hannah
Two sisters try to survive World War II in France. Starts off slow and not the best writing but it’s a good premise of a story about the resilience of women left behind in war.
“Lucy by the Sea” by Elizabeth Strout
An amicably divorced couple from NYC quarantines together in Maine during Covid. I didn’t realize this was apart of a larger series until the end because as a standalone, this book had no point.
“Shutter” by Ramona Emerson
A Navajo woman works as a crime scene photographer in Albuquerque and can see ghosts. A mystery thriller that kept me more interested in the family dynamics than the crime solving.
“Breath: The New Science of a Lost Art” by James Nestor
The evolution of hearing and its impacts on our health. Fascinating read. Covers why mouth breathing is bad, how we should be breathing, and a range of different breathing techniques.
“I’ll Be Gone in the Dark: One Woman’s Obsessive Search for the Golden State Killer” by Michelle McNamara
Details about the Golden State Killer’s brutal crimes written by an obsessed amateur sleuth who died before seeing him caught. The timeline was difficult to follow but the way this story pans out in the end is crazy.
“Little Fires Everywhere” by Celeste Ng
A book about different family setups and secrets. Could have gone deeper into the difficult issues but enjoyable read that kept me interested. The Hulu series was okay.
“Tender is the Flesh” by Agustina Bazterrica
When animals can no longer be eaten due to a virus, humanity descends into a dystopian world to eat alternatives. Brutal, graphic, not for the squemish.
“In Cold Blood” by Truman Capote
One of the first true crime story books written about a family murder in the 1950s, told from different perspectives. This was a solid classic read.
“Passing” by Nella Larsen
A short novel written during the Harlem Renaissance, two black childhood friends run into each other as adults and discover one is now “passing” as white. Complex and still relevant to today.
“Remarkably Bright Creatures” by Shelby Van Pelt
An elderly widow keeps herself busy by working at an aquarium and eventually befriends an intelligent octopus. Great story about grief, family, and growing older.
“Yellowface” by R. F. Kuang
A white woman steals an asian woman’s manuscript and passes it off as her own. I absolutely flew through this book from anxiety of needing to know how it all played out.
“Hello Beautiful” by Ann Napolitano
A bond between four sisters is tested over the years through their romantic relationships and generational traumas. I almost didn’t finish this but stuck with it once the drama picked up in a big way.
“Diana: Her True Story in Her Own Words” by Andrew Morton
The biography Diana secretly contributed to during her time as the Princess of Wales, exposing her relationship with Charles and the monarchy. Writing got repetitive but the interview transcripts and the post-book reactions were the best parts.
“Verity” by Colleen Hoover
A successful series authors gets into a car accident, leading her husband to invite a new author to stay at their home to continue writing the series. Overlook some of the craziness, quick thriller.
“The Last Thing He Told Me” by Laura Dave
A husband disappears after a tech scandal, leaving his wife to take care of her stepdaughter and figure out why he left. Did not want to finish, dumb premise, only continued because some scenes were in Austin, Texas.
“The Woman in Me” by Britney Spears
Britney’s story from growing up, becoming a star, and her conservatorship. I wish there were even more details.
“The Hidden Life of Trees: What They Feel, How They Communicate: Discoveries from a Secret World” by Peter Wohlleben
A deeper look into the world of trees as beings with social networks who communicate. Changed my whole view on trees. Absolutely fascinating.
“Educated: A Memoir” by Tara Westover
A memoir about growing up in a rural mormon family that didn’t homeschool, believe in doctors, or the government. The drama from her family after this book is so good.
“Love in the Time of Cholera” by Gabriel Garcia Marquez
A love story in the late 1800s in Colombia. Absolutely beautiful writing that you need to slow down and take in, but to me this was a mix of unexpected horror with romance.

The 40 book covers from books I read this year

Best and Worst Books I Read This Year

I read a lot of great books this year and had to sift through to share my top 5 books this year. After putting this list together, I realize that I gravitated towards thriller novels more.

Worst Books I Read This Year

I didn’t read too many bad novels this year, but the books I were disappointed by are below.

“The Maid” by Nita Prose
This book had pretty surface level characters. It was supposed to be a mystery novel but it slogged.
“The Paper Palace” by Miranda Cowley Heller
The characters were pretty awful people and I didn’t love the timeline bouncing around. Super disappointed by the ending.
“The Last Thing He Told Me” by Laura Dave
Early in the book, I figured I wasn’t going to finish this book, but then the setting moved to Austin and I stuck it out because I hadn’t read a book set in Austin yet. I hoped the ending would pay off but it didn’t, overall it wasn’t entertaining.
“The 4-Hour Work Week” by Timothy Ferriss
I thought I’d learn a lot about working more efficiently, but the TLDR is to find loopholes and hire out your job.

2024 Reading Goal

For 2024, I will keep my reading goal of 40 books the same. I felt 40 books was a good mix of pushing myself, but also giving myself time to relax and not feel pressured to read all the time. I have my book stack ready and reservations at the library in place, but if you have book recs, send them my way!